A variety of manual and automated techniques have been developed for efficient forward distribution (or simply distribution) of items from a supplier to multiple parties. As a result, today forward distribution in most industries is a relatively uncomplicated task. Suppliers such as manufacturers, distributors, or wholesalers use widely available software applications to process purchase orders and payments, generate invoices, and perform other activities common in forward distribution.
By contrast, reverse distribution is less developed and, in many ways, more complicated. Generally speaking, reverse distribution involves collection of unused or unsold items from customers and returning these items to manufacturers or wholesalers for cash, credit, exchange, or other benefit. Customers participating in reverse distribution may be retailers, government entities, non-commercial organizations, or even households or individuals. Some of the challenges customers and suppliers encounter when dealing with reverse distribution are the scarcity of convenient shipping options, the complexity of tracking the flow of items and credit, the abundance of pricing options, etc.
One area in which reverse distribution has proven to be particularly important is the pharmaceutical industry. As is known, manufactures of pharmaceuticals often buy back expired, defective, or simply unsold items from pharmacies, hospitals, and other organizations to prevent leakage of these items into the black market, and to generally encourage accurate supervision and accounting of pharmaceuticals. A typical pharmacy may thus have an option to ship certain items back to the respective manufacturers for a percentage of the purchase price. However, because forward distribution of pharmaceuticals usually proceeds via relatively few large distributors, it may be logistically difficult for the pharmacy to identify the manufacturer of each item and ship the item to the proper manufacturer. For example, one distributor may supply a pharmacy with items from tenths or even hundreds of manufacturers to make forward distribution easy and convenient for the pharmacy. The reverse procedure, on the other hand, may be too cumbersome for the pharmacy to implement.
To address reverse distribution needs of pharmacies, hospitals, and other organizations, some companies provide a service of collecting pharmaceutical items and returning these items to the corresponding manufacturers on behalf of their clients. These companies, which may be referred to as reverse distributors, coordinate the flow of items, money, and information between a large number of manufacturers on the one hand, and an even larger number of clients on the other hand. The process of reverse distribution is accordingly complex and resource-intensive. Further, repurchasing of pharmaceuticals is often subject to multiple complicated conditions. Still further, forward distribution of a certain items may be associated with numerous pricing options which may affect the repurchase price of the item by the manufacturer.
These and many other factors make reverse distribution of pharmaceuticals difficult to implement in a precise manner. Meanwhile, customers expect accuracy, efficiency, and reliability from the services offered by reverse distributors.